Education Discussion
Training for Healthcare Providers One of the biggest improvements that can be made is education to mothers and families for recognition of post birth warning signs as the vast majority of maternal deaths occur within 42 days of birth (Suplee et al., 2017, p. 1, para. 3). This starts with the healthcare provider. Assumptions should never be made and education should always be repeated to ensure information is clear. A study involving 372 American mother/baby or postpartum nurses of varying level hospitals displayed shocking results. When answering questions regarding maternal health over 50% answered that maternal death rates were decreasing, remaining the same, or were not aware (Suplee et al., 2017, Results section, p. 3, para. 1-2). If 50% of healthcare providers working directly with mothers are not aware of the rise in maternal death, deaths will continue to rise. In addition, nearly half of the United States does not review maternal death cases regularly (Belluz, 2017, para. 33). This is a crucial step in recognizing a problem to formulate a solution. These results suggest that it is unlikely that healthcare providers are remaining current on trends and if they were aware, they may be more likely to understand the importance of education. A possibility for the lack of education could be due to the staff feeling as though the mother is overwhelmed enough, so they limit education time. (Suplee et al., 2017, Clincial implications section, p. 3, para. 3) Recognition in the Community ''' A qualitative study reveled that “most” nurses reported patient teaching of post birth warning signs to be inconsistent in content, delivery and were occasionally inadequate. To much surprise, some of the nurses were found to not know about the most common causes of maternal mortality. This is important as similar studies proved that education regarding patient diagnosis and teaching significantly decreased the rate of readmission and death (Suplee, Bingham, & Kleppel, '2017, p. 1, para. 4). The studied nurses reported that 65% of them provided the majority of education throughout the patients stay, whereas 29% provided the majority of education on the day of discharge. Over 75% of nurses reported that their discharge education, including complications lasted less than 30 minutes with the majority spending less than 10 minutes on complications specifically (Suplee et al., 2017, Results section, p. 3, para. 3). Due to overwhelming emotions and exhaustion, education should be done throughout, and even before pregnancy. Community health has shown to be critical in addressing maternal, newborn and child mortality. Interventions span from education to preventative and therapeutic interventions at the patient’s home. This approach gives a thorough look at a family’s overall health to personalize care by the needs and desires of the patient (Bhutta et al., 2012, Delivering Integrated MNCH section, p. S16, para. 3). Individualized care is revealed to be most beneficial in prevention, however this approach is not currently feasible. Most women in the United States receive some kind of prenatal care. During these times complications should be mentioned, especially to high risk groups, with materials given for self education post appointments to allow for further questions and clarifications upon the next visit. '''Government Intervention ' Clearly, the need for improvement is alarming. The United States is failing mothers, therefore failing their children and families. A few steps towards maternal death reduction is to review maternal deaths confidentially, use technology and partnerships efficiently, and promote preventative matters in education to focus on human rights by safer interventions (Bhutta et al., 2012, Delivering Integrated MNCH section, pp. S15-S16, para. 1). The United States should be doing this as a whole to support effective outcomes. One place to start is the Title V Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant Program. As of 2017 “only 6 percent of block grants for "maternal and child health"… goes to moms” (Belluz, 2017, para. 46). The goal of prevention, recognition, and treatment of maternal deaths is not to produce numbers for publication, it is to produce improved care to reduce the numbers of children growing up without mothers. ' '